…for it. You are so pathetic.” These cruel thoughts make up your “critical inner voice.” This inner enemy evolves out of painful early life experiences, in which we internalized destructive attitudes. As adults, we act out these self-punishing attitudes by listening to our critical inner voice. It is essential that we get to know our inner critic and that we catch on when it starts to get louder in our minds. We must identify this voice as the ene…
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…will inevitably arise. The first enemy you’ll encounter is your “critical inner voice.” The critical inner voice is like a coach in your head that attempts to keep you feeling “safe” by maintaining your defensive adaptations to life and reinforcing the familiar old identity you grew up with. It may put you down and undermine your desires with thoughts like, “You don’t really want that, do you?” “You have never gone after it before,” “You probably…
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…ctual provocation of one’s partner is driven by listening to the “critical inner voice.” The critical inner voice is an internal enemy that coaches you and puts both you and your partner down. Because its goal is to sabotage and distance you from others, it tends to be especially critical toward the people to whom you’re closest. Of course, your partner is human and has real flaws, but your critical inner voice isn’t there to help you rationally t…
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…o these shifts without turning on yourself and giving in to your “critical inner voices,” allowing them to tear you down or make you feel insecure. It’s important not to listen to what your inner critic tells you about these changes or to allow yourself to shut the door on your sexuality. In addition to physical adjustments, people of all ages often face an onslaught of psychological influences that can hurt their sexuality. This can have a lot to…
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…reat ourselves when it comes to food and eating. 2. What are your critical inner voices around food? It’s much more challenging for people to find their own natural rhythm and balance when food itself can stir up feelings of anxiety and guilt. Many people struggle with disordered thoughts and feelings around how we look and what we eat. One major element that’s fueling this anxiety and guilt (along with self-doubt and self-hatred) is our “critical…
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…the less time we spend with others, the more time we spend with a critical inner voice inside our own heads. This “voice” always has the tendency to get louder when we’re alone. Because loneliness generally has a lot to do with how we think about our circumstances and not just the circumstances themselves, we can ease a lot of our suffering by doing the work of dealing with this inner critic. And what better moment to start this work than now when…
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…ew slides from Dr. Lisa Firestone’s December 6, 2011 Webinar “The Critical Inner Voice That Causes Depression.” To request a video recording of this Webinar, please contact [email protected] Download Slides from “The Critical Inner Voice That Causes Depression” Here Watch Dr. Robert Firestone describe the Steps in Voice Therapy: Recommended Books See all Upcoming PsychAlive Webinars Learn about upcoming free and CE PsychAlive Webinars with l…
Learn More…hors Robert W. Firestone, PhD. and Lisa Firestone, PhD. term the “critical inner voice.” In 25 years since Dr. Robert W.Firestone first began his investigations and case studies of the critical inner voice, he has gained profound insight into how “voices” are internalized by means of our early experiences. As people begin to uncover why they took on these self-critical attitudes and identify their misplacement in their current lives, they are fina…
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…my father, psychologist Dr. Robert Firestone, refers to as your “critical inner voice.” For people who are depressed, this critical inner voice can have a powerful and destructive influence on their state of mind. It may be feeding them a distorted commentary on their lives: You are too fat to leave the house. You are so stupid. No one will ever love you. You aren’t capable of being happy. You will never succeed at anything. The critical inner vo…
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…nyone hoping to overcome Post-Traumatic Stress. When isolated the critical inner voice takes more control over the person’s life. Individuals suffering from PTSD often engage in “Thinking Traps.” Meichenbaum describes how the “failure to believe anything positive could result from trauma experience” often lures individuals into an almost constant state of victimization. Engaging in “Why me” and “If only” thinking only furthers the emotional distan…
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